


Blood and Silver

by Arcaniel



Category: Original Work
Genre: Blood Drinking, Dark, Fantasy, M/M, Mind Games, Paladins, Romance, Torture, Vampires, War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-12
Updated: 2013-03-12
Packaged: 2017-12-05 02:17:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 21,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/717715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arcaniel/pseuds/Arcaniel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A grim war rages between vampires and human paladins. As the paladins manage to capture a vampire alive, young and hot-headed Kelron gets the order to gather information from the creature. A game of cat and mouse ensues...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hate

The loud sounds of trampling hooves and shouting woke Kelron from his deep slumber. Grumbling, he rolled around in his bed and tried to ignore the racket, but it was futile. He had been on night watch duty for the past four days and had gone to bed only an hour ago, but obviously he wasn't even going to be granted that little bit of sleep this morning.

The uproar didn't die down, so finally Kelron rose with an impatient growl and pushed the woolen blanket away. It was no use; he had to go down and see what the fuss was all about. If Castle Northwall was being attacked, he had to hurry, although Kelron hadn't heard the usual warning signal. Aside from that, the bloodsuckers wouldn't dare to attack since it was day already. 

Kelron went to the little wash stand, one of the few pieces of furniture in his frugal chamber except for the bed and an old, battered clothes chest. He splashed some water onto his face, slicking back his blonde hair that stood up from his head after rolling around on his pillow. The hasty washing didn't really liven him up, but it helped a bit to freshen his tired eyes. 

Kelron was dressed quickly, since he had slept in his trousers, pulling on his shirt and lacing up his boots. For a moment, he contemplated donning his armor, but that would take too long, and it still wasn't clear if there was an emergency at all. His sword, however, was another matter. No paladin of the Order of the Silver Blade could ever be seen without his weapon, even in front of his comrades.

Kelron left his room and swiftly went through the long corridor of the living quarters to the stairs leading down to the vast central inner courtyard of Castle Northwall. Horses were neighing, and now Kelron could make out two familiar voices, raised in a heated argument. Obviously Master Waragus, warden of the paladins of Castle Northwall, and Master Mergil, Kelron's mentor, disagreed gravely about something.

"…not be risked! Do you have any idea how dangerous it would be to imprison it here?" Mergil shouted.

"That is a risk I'm willing to take! We need the information! And it won't get a chance to tell the others about us. When we know everything we need to, we'll kill it!" Waragus roared back at him. "I am the warden, and my orders will be obeyed!"

Kelron had reached the inner courtyard by now and spotted the two masters glaring at each other with grim faces. Their looks contrasted greatly: Waragus was tall and regal in the silver-lined cloak of his office and with an elegantly trimmed, graying beard, while Mergil was the ascetic type with a short, wiry stature and a bald head, wearing battered armor.

Behind the two men stood a carriage with two horses stomping restlessly and snorting. Four paladins in blood-splattered armor and with tired faces were about to lift a wrapped bundle out of the carriage.

"Fine, but I warned you! What if they're going to search for it?" Mergil spat. "And our dungeons have never been tested if they'll really be able hold a vampire! We also have to choose the guards very carefully."

Master Waragus had spotted Kelron and smiled grimly. "How about your model pupil, Master Mergil? He still has three weeks of night watch duty ahead of him as punishment for his insolent behavior that you undoubtedly encouraged him in."

Mergil's alert gazed switched to Kelron. "Come here, boy."

Kelron did as he was told although he wasn't a boy any longer, but an adult and a paladin of the second-highest rank. But Mergil had practically raised him and would always see him as his little boy. Kelron tolerated this, but only his mentor was allowed to call him that.

"Yes, Master? What's going on here?" Kelron asked. 

"We caught a bloodsucker alive," Waragus told him. "Master Mergil thinks it's too dangerous to keep it here, but we need some information from it. So we are going to interrogate this monster. The rest of the time it will be held in the dungeon under your watchful eyes."

The younger paladin narrowed his eyes. "With all due respect, Master, but I agree with Master Mergil. That seems to be far too dangerous."

Waragus waved this argument aside. "We built that dungeon specifically for this purpose. The bars are made of silver, so it can't escape."

"So why do you need me as a guard, then?" Kelron asked.

The warden smirked. "It's very simple. You have to gain its trust in case the interrogation fails."

Kelron shook his head in disgust. "Master, I'm the least appropriate for this task. And…"

"That wasn't a request, paladin, but an order!" Waragus barked. "And you are the most appropriate because your hate of the bloodsuckers will keep you from falling for the lies the monster is undoubtedly going to tell you. We've seen this far too often: vampires can lure people into obeying their every order."

Kelron still didn't like this, but he lowered his head. "As you command, Master," he murmured.

"Very well," Waragus said. "And if you are able to gain some information that will give us a strategic advantage, I'm going to overlook your past misconducts and might promote you to the youngest master in paladin history."

This was a tempting prospect indeed. The warden knew how to apply the right dose of strictness and lenience to keep his paladins' loyalty and obedience, but he never made empty promises.

The warden gave the other paladins a sign to follow him across the courtyard. Mergil and Kelron went with him as well.

"Master Waragus, what information do you need exactly?" Kelron asked. "Please pardon the question, but if this were just about some minor things, you wouldn't take the risk of bringing a bloodsucker here."

"You are smart, Kelron," Waragus allowed. "There is indeed a reason, and when you learn about it, I'm sure you'll be convinced my decision was right." The warden unlocked a heavy, silver-strengthened door. Behind it was a spiral staircase, illuminated by torches, leading downward. "This is all about finding out where Lord Valendar hides."

Kelron almost tripped on the first step as he heard that name. Valendar was the most feared and most powerful of all vampire lords, and he had been hiding for twenty years now since the last great battle that had been victorious for the humans. He was also the one who had attacked the little village of Tramentir for no other purpose than its inconvenient location right between him and the human capital. 

Kelron took a deep breath, trying to suppress the memories, but failing. Once again, he saw the village burning, saw people running screaming from their homes just to get slaughtered by the bloodsuckers. Once again, he was a child of eight years, cowering under a half-collapsed wall and staring at the horror around him with wide eyes, unable to comprehend. Just a few steps away from him, the lifeless body of his father fell to the ground. The man had desperately tried to defend his child, armed with only a pitchfork. But it had been useless.

Kelron still saw everything in front of him as if it had happened just yesterday: the huge figure, clad in blood-red, spiked armor, that had killed his father with just one stroke of its sword and then stepped over his corpse to approach Kelron. Blood was dripping from the artfully decorated blade, and behind the visor of the helmet glowed a set of eyes equally red in color. The monster came nearer and nearer, but before it reached Kelron, the wall he had been hiding under collapsed completely.

Kelron's memories ended there. The next thing he knew he was lying in a field hospital the paladins had built and seeing Mergil looking down at him and telling him he was safe now. Lord Valendar had been forced to give up on the siege of the human capital and since then had vanished without a trace.

Ever since, Kelron's only wish had been to become a paladin himself so that he would be able to fight the bloodsuckers – and one day, Lord Valendar as well. Now, it might be finally time for it.

"Boy?" A hand, warm and comforting, lay on Kelron's shoulder, and Mergil looked at him with worried eyes.

"It's alright," he said. "Master Waragus is right. If this bloodsucker really knows something concerning Valendar's hideout, then it's worth every risk."

Mergil didn't reply, just patted him on the shoulder again.

The staircase seemed to lead down endlessly, but finally they reached another silver-strengthened door leading into the dungeon. It contained three separate cells, each of them lined with silver bars, a desk, a chair for the guard, and a holder for torches on the wall. Another door led to a torture chamber, as Kelron knew. 

Waragus unlocked the first cell. "Put it in here," he ordered the paladins who carelessly let the wrapped bundle fall onto the stone floor. Waragus locked the cell door again.

"I'm keeping the cell key," he said to Kelron. "You get the one for the door down here and upstairs. You know that bloodsuckers fall into a deep slumber as soon as the sun rises, even when they can't see it. That is the only reason why we could transport it at all without a fight. That means you only have to guard it between sunset and dawn. There will also be a guard upstairs."

Kelron nodded and took the key. "Understood, Master."

"Very well. I'll return after sundown for the interrogation. You can rest until then as well."

Kelron was sure he wouldn't be able to go back to sleep now. But his stomach was rumbling anyway, demanding something to eat.

Meanwhile, Master Mergil had been waiting with crossed arms, not letting the bundle inside the cell out of his sight.

"Master, would you join me for lunch?" the Kelron asked him.

The old man looked at him, nodding. "That beast obviously isn't moving. But I'd like to know if it really stays that way during the day. You'd better come back down here after lunch."

"You're letting me off from our daily fighting lesson?" the younger paladin asked incredulously. For as long as he could remember, Mergil insisted on this daily training fight that Kelron still lost every time, although he was already stronger and bigger than his master and was able to beat any other paladin of the order. But Mergil's dexterity and experience was still unmatched.

The old man laughed. "This one time, I'll spare you the shame of sending you into the dirt, my boy."

 

One hour later, Kelron returned to the dungeon sated and far more impressive-looking in his full armor. The scale mail enabled him to sit quite comfortably, and he stretched his legs to prevent the leg pieces from cutting into his flesh. During riding or fighting he didn't mind such small things, but if he was to sit here for the next few days or even weeks, he better made sure his posture didn't affect his condition. 

The bundle on the cell floor still hadn't moved, and it didn't take Kelron long to doze off.

 

It was just a little rustling sound that woke him up again. The paladin had no idea what time it was, but at least one torch had burned down and had to be replaced, so he estimated more than two hours at least.

Kelron got up to put a new torch into the holder when he heard the rustling again. He turned around to see the bloodsucker moving. Instinctively, he reached for his sword and waited to see what happened next.

The rough cloth was ripped, and two white hands with inhumanly long, sharp fingernails, no, claws appeared. A white head followed, and then the bloodsucker discarded the cloth completely and stood up from the floor.

Kelron suspiciously watched the incredibly fluid and noiseless movement. The bloodsucker combed a few silver-white strands out of its face; its hair was sleek and at hip-length. Then it turned around to face Kelron.

The paladin shuddered at the sight of its red eyes. That feature wasn't uncommon for vampires who had reached a certain age and a certain degree of power, and Kelron had seen some of them on the battlefield already. But this bloodsucker's piercing gaze set his whole body on edge, raising the hairs on the back of his neck – even more since those eyes didn't seem to match the otherwise ageless, marble-like perfection of the face.

"Where am I?" The vampire's voice was deep and velvety despite its demanding tone. 

Kelron opened his mouth to answer when he realized it was the vampire's power forcing him to reply without a thought. "You are inside a dungeon. And we're the ones asking the questions!" he said with a frown.

"We? Oh, the paladins of the Silver Blade, of course. Your armor gives it away." 

The bloodsucker groomed its hair a bit and dusted its clothing off. It was wearing black boots, trousers and a jerkin with a dark-red shirt underneath. The style was simple, but the soft shimmer of the clothing spoke of fine quality. The vampire was almost as tall as Kelron who towered over most men, but it was slender and less muscled. Kelron was sure he could span both the vampire's wrists with just one hand. 

But a bloodsucker's power had nothing to do with physical strength. It was their agility, speed, and their ability to ensnare humans that made them so dangerous. Furthermore, no weapons could harm them except those made of silver.

The bloodsucker straightened itself and fixated Kelron again with its unsettling gaze.

"But you are not asking anything, human?"

"That will be the master's task," Kelron replied coolly. How on earth should he gain this creature's trust in case the interrogation failed? The vampire would know instantly it was a ruse!

The bloodsucker smiled slightly, baring pointy canine teeth, while it approached the bars and touched them with the tip of its finger. Instantly, the skin turned red like it had been burned, and the creature pulled its hand away.

"Ah, your master. So you are just a little foot soldier who has to guard me."

"I bear the rank of a knight, answering only to the masters!" Kelron growled. "You mind your words, monster!"

But the bloodsucker's smile just grew broader. "Now I tremble with fear. What are you going to do? Come into my cell and stab me? I bet you do not even have the key to my pretty silver cage."

Now Kelron suspected that the vampire had been awake the whole time, listening to Waragus' words. Or maybe it was just trying to provoke Kelron – and succeeding.

Angry with himself, the paladin barked, "You will beg for death before we're finished with you!"

"Oh? That sounds promising." The bloodsucker was still smiling.

Before Kelron could think of a retort, the door opened for Master Waragus and four other paladins.

"Ah, it's awake, very good. Did anything happen, Kelron?" the warden asked.

Kelron shook his head. Of course he wouldn't tell his master about his suspicions in front of the vampire.

Waragus pulled out the cell key to unlock the door, and two of the paladins drew their swords while the other two brought hand- and ankle cuffs made of silver. 

The bloodsucker didn't resist and remained unaffected although the cuffs undoubtedly burned its skin like hot coals. Its head held high, it followed Waragus into the torture chamber.

Kelron let a sigh of relief as the door closed behind the guarding paladins. In just a few moments, that monster had managed to get under his skin, but now he was prepared. Aside from that, the sharp tools and knives of the torture chamber should do their best to tame the bloodsucker.

To his surprise he didn't hear any screams. He just heard muted Waragus' voice, asking questions, but aside from that, everything was quiet. Obviously, the warden used the more harmless methods or just threatened.

After a while, the door was opened again and Waragus exited the torture chamber with a grim face. It was clear that he hadn't gained any information at all, but that had been expected.

The paladins brought the vampire back into its cell and took off the cuffs. Kelron saw the red marks on the wrists, resembling severe burns. The bloodsucker still looked unaffected and haughty.

Waragus approached the cell. "You think that you can endure this forever, monster. But you're feeling pain just as we humans do, I know that. If the knives and chains don't loosen your tongue, the hunger will. Don't delude yourself with thinking that you'll get even one drop of blood."

The bloodsucker just looked at him condescendingly and remained silent.

Waragus and the other paladins left.

After the door closed behind them, Kelron sat down again on the chair and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "The master doesn't make idle threats," he remarked. "If you're not talking, you'll be held here and suffer for all eternity."

"And if I talk I will get a swift death? What a delightful perspective," the bloodsucker replied sarcastically and rubbed at the underside of its left arm. Kelron could now see several holes in the sleeve that hadn't been there before.

"Well, maybe the master will be merciful if he likes what he hears," Kelron dared. "If you give away the location of Lord Valendar's hideout, he might let you go."

The vampire scoffed at him. "How stupid do you think I am, human?"

"An oath is an oath, even one sworn to a monster," Kelron continued. "That is, if the information is correct."

"And what gave you the idea that I know anything concerning Lord Valendar's whereabouts?" the bloodsucker demanded to know. "Not all of us serve him."

"The master had his reasons for capturing you, so you must know something," Kelron persisted. "And if you're not serving Valendar, then you can tell us about him without betraying him."

The vampire started to laugh, a low, nerve-grating sound. "Maybe you are not as stupid as you seem, human. Kelron, that is your name, right? And I'll even tell you something else."

"And what’s that, monster?" Kelron tried not to look interested.

The bloodsucker smirked. "My name, so you can stop giving me those charming names. I am called Silverian."

 

To be continued...


	2. Pain

Silverian seemed to sleep during the day, and Kelron could pass his time outside and sleep in his own bed. At night, there was no sleeping at all under the watchful eyes of the vampire. The creature didn't attempt to start a conversation while Kelron let him stew as well, except for some remarks about the advantages of giving in.

A few hours after sunset, Waragus appeared, but once again left without answers. However, he nodded contentedly as Kelron made his report to him outside in the courtyard. "It's how I thought: it thinks it can manipulate you into helping it. Just play along."

"But what if it really knows nothing?" the younger paladin asked.

"It knows something, otherwise we wouldn't have caught it during a skirmish against a troop bearing Lord Valendar's crest. It must belong to Valendar's court because it is neither dressed like a fighter nor like a simple servant." 

Kelron nodded. "I'll try my best."

"Very well. Alone, the fact that it talks to you is promising. Try to engage it in conversation, and sooner or later it will let something slip – either unconsciously or in calculation."

"So it didn't say anything during the interrogations?" Kelron asked, although he already knew the answer.

"Not a single word," Waragus replied. "Its ability to endure pain is remarkable. I guess it's already a few hundred years old or it would already show weakness due to the lack of fresh blood."

"And what do we do if it just falls asleep? Master Mergil told me that vampires who don't get blood fall into a state of rigor after some time. And then it won't be able to answer any questions," Kelron remarked.

"Well, before it comes to that, we'll feed it," the warden said. "Rumor has it vampires can drink animal blood. We'll try it."

"And if it doesn't work?"

"Then we'll think of something else, but it should take some more time until then."

"Master, there's something else," Kelron said. "I suspect that the bloodsucker doesn't really sleep during the day and listened to our conversation when we brought it into the dungeon." In short, he recounted Silverian's words.

But Waragus waved it aside. "That's impossible. And you know that vampires are very good when it comes to reading humans. It was just took a lucky guess. And now return to your post. I'll check our records to see if somewhere there's a mention of a bloodsucker called Silverian."

With these words, Kelron was dismissed, and he returned to the dungeon. There he found the vampire exactly the way he had left it, sitting on the stone floor due to the lack of any furniture in the cell and examining the new holes in its shirt. Finally, it rolled up its sleeves and licked at the fresh wounds underneath. 

"I do not suppose that you have a tailor available here?" Silverian asked without looking up.

"We have one, but not for the likes of you," Kelron retorted. "And I think you have other things to worry about than a few holes in your clothing."

"Oh, and what things exactly? I am sitting in a cell, waiting to be killed by some self-righteous paladins, but aside from that, I have nothing to do with my time." Silverian rose in a fluent motion and gazed at Kelron. "But at least I have you for entertainment. It is not the best I could imagine, but far better than nothing."

"Is that so?" the paladin growled. "You should be happy that at least someone's talking to you at all."

"I am touched. But your sole task is to get some information from me, is it not? Your warden probably commanded you to obtain my trust so that I will tell you something of importance. If this is the case, you are not putting much effort into it." With a nonchalant gesture, the vampire combed some strands of hair out of its face and smiled tauntingly.

Just his iron willpower kept Kelron from approaching the cell, grabbing the arrogant bloodsucker and pressing it up against the bars until its skin was littered with burns. But he controlled himself, reminding himself that this was just another try to manipulate and unsettle him. If he got this riled up, he did exactly what the vampire wanted!

Kelron forced himself to hold the bloodsucker's derisive gaze and took a deep breath to calm himself. "You seem to be well informed, monster. It's just bad luck it won't help you at all. The only thing that could help you is telling us what we want to know. Until then, you'll be stuck in this dungeon like a mouse in a trap."

Silverian raised an eyebrow. "And what if I just think something up to appease you?"

"We'll prove everything before we decide to use any kind of knowledge," Kelron replied.

"All I hear is 'we'. I thought the decisions lay with your oh-so-honorable warden and not with an unimportant knight like you."

This time, Kelron didn't take the bait. "But the warden decides things based on my reports, so I do have some say in it. You should be more grateful, beast."

"I would be grateful if you used my name, Kelron." Silverian approached the silver bars. 

"Why should I? You don't deserve to be treated like a person," Kelron grumbled.

The vampire's eyes narrowed. "Your hate of my kind is not just based on the teachings of your order, right?"

"It's not. And if you really want to know: as a child, I witnessed Lord Valendar's attack on my home village. That monster killed my father right in front of my eyes! I think I have enough reason to hate your damned kind even if you didn't see humans as just food, entertainment, and some obstacle in your way!" Kelron didn't notice that he had jumped up from his chair. All of his rage and contempt had finally found a definite target, a target that could neither run away nor fight back, but had to listen to his accusations.

But Silverian wasn't impressed. "Although your order might teach you differently, we were not the ones who started the war. It was your king who suddenly decided that we are a plague to be purged, although we lived peacefully in our fortresses and did not meddle in human affairs."

"Not meddle in human affairs? Don't make me laugh! You need our blood!" Kelron bristled. "That's the only reason for your fight against us! You want to subjugate us so we have to serve you as cattle!"

Once again, Silverian's laughter sent shivers down the paladin's spine. "You do not know anything, do you? It is no wonder that you paladins slaughter us blindly like we were animals." The bloodsucker took another step toward the bars, fixating Kelron with its gaze. "We do not fight a war against you, Kelron. We fight for survival."

"You're lying! Do you really think I'd believe this nonsense?" Kelron growled. "I know how things are in reality, and I've witnessed your kind slaughter helpless people! Don't you dare deny it!"

Silverian shrugged. "You can believe whatever you want. What else is to be expected from a paladin except blind rage and blind obedience? It is pathetic."

The vampire intended to turn away with a sneer, but Kelron grabbed it though the bars at the wrists and pulled it against the silvery metal. "And if you don't shut up now, you'll see how I disobey my master and kill you on the spot!" the paladin hissed.

His barely-held control was gone, and he noticed he enjoyed seeing how the silver left red stripes on the vampire's immaculate skin. The creature's face was so close to Kelron's own that he could feel its breath. It was surprisingly steady and slow, and the bloodsucker's face betrayed no fear. But the haughty expression was gone, leaving something different and dark.

"You will not kill me," Silverian whispered, sending shivers down the paladin's spine again. "On the contrary, you will get me out of here."

Kelron grabbed the vampire even harder and thought he heard bones grinding under the pressure of his silver-strengthened gauntlets. "You will rot in here!"

"Oh, and what about the information concerning Lord Valendar? What if I gave it to you – given that you let me go immediately and swear not to tell anyone about what you have learned?"

Kelron snorted. "Nice try, monster. But I won't betray my master or swear false oaths!" All of a sudden, he let go of Silverian and brought some distance between himself and the cell. "Give up, beast. You only manage to make me angry, nothing more."

"Just wait and see, Kelron," Silverian replied with a mysterious smile while rubbing the abused wrists. Each of them now bore a red handprint.

 

Kelron remained silent for the rest of the night, sitting on his chair and staring into space. All of his precious control had slipped in seconds, leaving nothing but hate to reign him. Such a behavior was unworthy of a paladin, he knew that. But it had always been Kelron's biggest character flaw not to be able to master his hot temper. On the battlefield it was an advantage to follow his instincts instead of thinking, but in contact with other people it didn't give him any credit. The night watches had been punishment for a brawl with some younger paladins who had made a harmless joke on his account. But instead of reprimanding the men, Kelron had used his fists. 

Old Master Mergil had scolded him often enough for this behavior, but in certain moments Kelron just didn't want to control himself –only to be angry with himself for it later.

Meanwhile, Silverian had sat down again and licked at the fresh wounds like a cat. Kelron had noticed that the abrasions and cuts from the day before had already healed, but the weaker the bloodsucker grew, the slower this process would take. 

Finally, Silverian curled up in a corner, eyes closed, and stopped breathing. It was a sure sign for Kelron that the sun had risen. He waited a few moments to make sure before he left the dungeon. He sorely needed sleep, lots of food and the company of decent people instead of a lying beast set on making him see red.

 

"You look exhausted, boy," Mergil remarked when they met for breakfast in the dining hall. 

All the paladins were sitting at long wooden tables, making noise, and being in high spirits. In the meantime, everyone had learned that they had caught an important bloodsucker, and obviously all of the men believed the vital information to beat their enemy to be close. Gossip was spreading in Castle Northwall faster than among a group of farmer wives on market day, as Kelron silently deemed it.

He took a sip from his jug of milk and looked at his old master.

"It's not really comfortable watching all night over that monster and listening to its lies," he answered. "Aside from that, it sure knows how to provoke me. Today, I barely kept myself from strangling it."

Mergil sighed. "I told you a thousand times: if you don't learn to control your temper, one day you'll run head over feet into disaster. And you know what Waragus told you. You have to talk to that bloodsucker, not kill it – although I think it's a waste of time."

"That monster realized my intentions," Kelron said. "And I'm bad at pretending, you know that. It won't tell me anything willingly."

The old man raised an eyebrow. "Did you really think it'd believe you while your rage is plainly written all over your face? Those creatures know how to find out and exploit human weaknesses. You're playing right into its hand when you get angry. Maybe it even hopes you'll lose control and kill it."

Kelron snorted. "I'm not that stupid, Master. But this beast had the audacity to tell me I would be the one to let it out!" He hesitated. "I told it that if it betrays Lord Valendar's location to us, we might let it go free."

Mergil stared at him incredulously, then he started to laugh. "And you thought to gain anything with such empty promises? You really still have a lot to learn."

"But I have to promise it something! Why else would it help us? Waragus' methods of torture don't seem to have any results."

"Be patient, my boy," Mergil reminded the younger paladin. "After a week or so the vampire will get weak due to the lack of blood. I'm sure it'll be far more receptive by then, either for torture or for promises."

"I hope you're right, Master," Kelron murmured and took another bite of his bread. He felt a bit better now.

 

The next days and nights passed uneventfully. Kelron didn't give it another try to get anything out of Silverian, and the vampire remained silent as well. Sometimes during those nights, their eyes met and silently spoke of hate and derision, impatience and composure. Also, nothing important happened during Waragus' nightly visits. Just the bloodsucker's clothes were torn to shreds bit by bit, revealing nasty wounds that healed slower and slower. It was an obvious sign of the vampire's growing weakness.

A full week after the vampire's capture something finally disrupted the monotony. Waragus had come for another interrogation, but the glittering of his eyes had told Kelron that the warden had a new plan. Furthermore, two paladins accompanied him, carrying a small, obviously hot cauldron.

It didn't matter to Kelron though since he still didn't believe that it would make a difference. He sat down on his chair and waited for his master to finish. Like usual, he heard muted voices through the closed door of the torture chamber, but nothing else.  
Suddenly, a bloodcurdling scream echoed though the dungeon, and Kelron flinched. Never before in his life had he heard such a noise although he was familiar with the terrible cries of wounded and dying people on a battlefield.

After some endless seconds, the scream died down, and the paladin breathed a sigh of relief. He was neither squeamish nor easy to terrify, but he had no desire to hear that noise ever again.

Now he could hear Waragus' voice again, followed by the creaking of the opening door. The warden left the torture chamber, grim satisfaction showing in his face. 

"Did you hear that, Kelron? That was the first cry of pain I wrenched from this creature! I'm sure it'll do anything to spare itself that agony next time."

Behind him followed the other two paladins, dragging Silverian's motionless body behind them to let it fall onto the cell floor. The vampire didn't move at all.

Waragus locked the cell door. "Kelron, you have to get the beast to talk once it's awake, you hear me?"

"I'll try," Kelron answered and suppressed the question of what exactly the warden had done to the bloodsucker. If he thought about it, he really didn't want to know since it had to be horrible to wring such a scream from the otherwise stoic bloodsucker. 

Waragus and his men left the dungeon, leaving Kelron alone with Silverian. The vampire still didn't move, and just the slow heaving of his chest told the paladin that the creature hadn't fallen into a rigor yet. But he hadn't thought it possible for a vampire to faint.

Some time went by, and nothing happened. Finally, Kelron had enough.

"Hey!" He called out to the vampire. "They're long gone, you can wake up."

Still nothing. Kelron got up and moved closer to the cell. He couldn't see much except lots of tangled hair covering the vampire's face and clawed hands that now looked not only pale, but ashen.

"Hey, bloodsucker! You're useless when dead, so give it up and talk! Whatever Master Waragus did to you, he'll do it again if you stay silent!"

The bloodsucker still didn't respond, and now things started to get fishy for Kelron. What if Waragus had overdone it and the creature didn't survive? Then Kelron's sleepless nights and all the trouble would have been for nothing. He came even closer to the bars, wishing – not for the first time - he had the cell key.

"Damn!" he cursed under his breath. "Stop this nonsense and get up! Hey, Silverian!"

As if the name had been a magic spell, the vampire started to move. Slowly, it pulled itself up into a sitting position and looked at Kelron. 

The paladin was shocked to see the sallow color of its skin and the dark shadows under the eyes, making Silverian's statuesque face look like a skull. During the last few days, Kelron had never spared a real glance at the bloodsucker, so he hadn't noticed any change. But to see this decline now so clearly was alarming.

"So… you do remember my name," Silverian whispered. The usually velvety voice sounded hoarse. "But I stay true to my decision: if I tell anything at all, it will be to you alone."

"Then talk to me. Or do you want things to continue like this?" Kelron asked.

"No, not really…" Carefully, the vampire pulled the shredded fragments of its clothing away from the wound on its chest. The crest of the Order of the Silver Blade, an oval around a stylized sword, was emblazoned on its skin. The burned edges of the wounds glistened and caught the light of the torches, and Kelron realized that the wound was effused with liquid silver. The paladin dared not to imagine what kind of unbelievable pain that must cause. No wonder that this treatment had broken Silverian's calmness.

But the monster's face showed more than just barely suppressed pain, and Kelron finally recognized it as deeply wounded pride. Was there something more humiliating than being branded with your archenemy's symbol?

"Are you done gawking, human?" Silverian asked acidly and pulled the ruined cloth back over the wound to hide it although it didn't help much. "Why do you not run along and celebrate with your warden that you finally managed to break the prisoner? Go on, drink with your comrades! Have a good laugh and celebrate your victory!"

"There is nothing to celebrate," Kelron replied calmly. As strange as it was, but he was neither happy about the bloodsucker's condition nor angry about its words. "I don't call it victory to torture a helpless prisoner."

Silverian's red eyes flashed. "So is it pity now? You can keep that to yourself."

The paladin shook his head. "It's your own fault, so why should I pity you? I just wonder about your stupidity."

Silverian laughed hoarsely. "So you think me stupid? And you think I should betray one of my own kind to save my own skin? Even if you would let me go which I still doubt, my kin would kill me for my betrayal. Either way, it would be my end."

"Then why are you going on about telling me something?" Kelron asked in confusion.

"Because Lord Valendar would grant a single paladin, coming to him on his own, an honorable duel."

"That devil lord has such honor? Don't be ridiculous."

"You do not know anything, as I told you before," Silverian replied. "It is not only you paladins who have a code of honor. Why do you think so many vampires follow Valendar?"

"Because they're as bloodthirsty and cruel as him and hope to enslave as many humans as possible under his reign?"

The vampire sighed uncharacteristically. "Kelron, let me ask you a question: did you ever actually see a vampire drink blood from a human?"

"No, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"Everything. We cannot change a human into a vampire against their will. And neither can we drink human blood unless it is offered to us willingly," Silverian explained calmly. 

Kelron narrowed his eyes. "And you expect me to believe this nonsense?"

The vampire shrugged. "Believe whatever you want, but it is the truth. The humans living with us do so of their own free will and are no slaves at all."

"I guess you can't feel that bad since you're already able to tell fairytales again," the paladin snorted.

The remainder of Silverian's old, superior smile ghosted over the vampire's gaunt face for a moment as it asked, "Do not tell me you were worried?"

"My only worry is that you die before you tell us what we want to know," Kelron retorted sharply.

The torchlight reflected in the vampire's eyes, its voice just a whisper. "You already know what you have to do to get everything you want from me. Keep it to yourself and get me out of here."

"Even if I wanted, Master Waragus has the cell key," the paladin replied. "Make that offer to him, not me."

"I will die first." With those words, Silverian curled up in a corner, facing away from Kelron and staying like that for the rest of the night. As its breathing stopped, Kelron knew that it was dawn outside. 

 

To be continued...


	3. Doubt

"Is that so?" Warden Waragus lifted his bushy eyebrows while listening to Kelron's report the next morning. The two men slowly walked across the courtyard where Master Mergil was training some squires in the finer art of sword fighting. 

"And it's really willing to tell you details if you swear to it to keep the information to yourself and let it go?"

"Yes, Master. But I don't know if I can actually believe that," Kelron replied. "I rather think it's a cheap ruse to get free."

"But it is a chance nevertheless," Waragus said, pondering. "It might work with some careful measures to ensure that the bloodsucker doesn't get away before it actually talks."

"But Master, what use is there in just me knowing Valendar's whereabouts?" the younger paladin reminded his superior. "As tempting as the thought is to go and face that demon alone, I couldn't possibly count on its honor."

"Nevertheless, I won't completely discard that possibility. For example, a group of paladins could follow you to Lord Valendar's hideout. You wouldn't be breaking your word."

Kelron frowned. "No, Master. I'm sorry, but it would be dishonorable, nevertheless. We have to find another way."

Waragus gazed at him. "Your attitude is laudable, and you're right, of course. But we have to find something out, no matter how we do so, and so I’ve decided to actually let our prisoner go if it tells us the truth. The vampire will get my solemn oath as warden that no paladin will harm it until it has left our territory."

"It said it would rather die than take this offer from you," Kelron answered.

"Well, we'll see about that." Waragus' smile was unpleasant.

 

"If you don't take Master Waragus' offer, he'll infuse your wounds with silver every night. And when you get too weak, you'll get some blood. There's no escape from this," Kelron explained. 

He had returned to the dungeon just before sunset, but it had taken Silverian a long time to wake up. The wounds were not healed at all, and the vampire moved very slowly. The red eyes, however, still burned.

"And whose blood do you want to give me? Animal blood? I cannot drink it. And which of you humans would give me their blood willingly?" the bloodsucker asked with a sneer. "Oh no, Kelron, your oh-so-clever master is wrong. A few days more, and I will fall into a rigor. And if the silver is not removed from my skin until then, it will poison me and slowly kill me while I sleep."

The paladin knew that the creature wasn't lying. Its poor condition was all too clear for everyone to see. So if Kelron didn't want to make any promises he couldn't keep, then there was just one thing for him to do. He was a bit horrified by the prospect, but it was his task to help his order to find Valendar at last. And Silverian was his only hope.

Kelron took a deep breath. "You can have a bit of my blood," he finally said.

Hunger suddenly glistened in Silverian's eyes, and the paladin shivered involuntarily at this sight. 

The vampire smirked. "Your blood? You are giving it willingly?"

Kelron nodded. "Because I don't think you want to die. And as long as you live, you have a chance for freedom."

"Wise words from such a young human," Silverian said. "But I am warning you: if you do not mean what you say, your blood will be wasted."

"I mean it. And before you ask: it's not my master's order. He doesn't even know."

"So you have secrets from your master now?" Silverian wrapped a long silver strand of hair around a bony finger; the formerly silky mane was now matted and frayed. "Did he by any chance ask something of you that you found dishonorable?"

It was uncanny how exactly Silverian had guessed the truth, but Kelron tried to keep a cool face. "It's as you said yourself: I'm here to win your trust. Is there a better way?"

"Indeed." Slowly, Silverian got up from the floor. "How about a little proof?"

"What do you mean?" Kelron asked warily.

"Give me a drop of blood, so I can taste in it, if you speak the truth."

The paladin hesitated, on edge due to the obvious voracity in the vampire's gaze. But despite that, it was the perfect opportunity. Maybe the bloodsucker would be more willing to think about Waragus' offer once it saw that Kelron stood true to his word.

After a short moment of thinking how to go about this, he finally pulled off the gauntlet of his left hand, took his dagger and cut into his forefinger. He held the hand through the bars as soon as a drop of blood spilled from the little wound.

The vampire reacted immediately. With its clawed fingers it grabbed Kelron's wrist with a swiftness that belied its miserable condition and started to lick the blood from the fingertip. The bloodsucker's skin was cold, but the touch of its tongue sent a strange heat wave through Kelron's body. He wanted to pull back his arm, but Silverian held onto it to catch a few more drops of blood. Finally, the vampire let go with obvious reluctance and looked at Kelron. A fire seemed to burn in its red eyes; a glowing, consuming, and dangerous flame. 

"Thank you," it whispered.

In reflex, Kelron cradled his hand against his chest, but the burning sensation faded very slowly until it was just a prickle.

"You see, I didn't lie," he said grimly. "And don't thank me. It's for my order, not for you."

The vampire smiled, and the deepest shadows in its face seemed to be vanishing already. "Believe whatever you want. I know better than that. And that is why I thank you."

The paladin turned away as anger boiled in him. What was this beast thinking? One didn't thank an enemy! It was just another trick to unsettle Kelron.

But nevertheless... wouldn't Kelron thank anyone who gave him water when he was dying of thirst? But he was a human with honor, decency, and compassion while the vampire was a cruel monster, a beastly creature thirsting for blood like a vulture hungering for dead flesh.

They had nothing in common. Nothing at all.

 

In the evening, Master Waragus returned and assessed Silverian with furrowed brows before he ordered the vampire to be brought into the torture chamber. For the first time, Silverian caught Kelron's gaze before the door of the torture chamber closed. The paladin thought he almost seemed to recognize a plea for help in those red eyes. 

No, he was wrong. Aside from that, he couldn't help the bloodsucker even if he wanted to.

This time, it took longer until Kelron heard anything. The screams were muffled this time, but no less miserable. As the paladins dragged Silverian back into the cell, Kelron could see a fresh wound at the shoulder, lined with liquid silver. The vampire had stayed conscious this time, but was unable to walk alone. There were no silver cuffs on it, deemed unnecessary due to its weakness.

"Think about it, monster: your life for a little information," Waragus said smugly. "Until tomorrow night, then." He locked the cell door and commanded his paladins to follow him out of the dungeon. 

Kelron waited until he was alone again with Silverian before he turned to the vampire. "See? I told you..."

He stopped when he saw the vampire scraping at the fresh wound with its claws. It obviously tried to get the poisonous metal out, but since it couldn't be wounded by normal means, its claws were useless as well. It reminded Kelron of an animal trying to pull out a hunter's arrow from its side before it inevitably died.

No, the paladin felt no compassion at all. But what did all this tell him about his order whose prisoners were treated like this? A clean, final strike with a blade was one thing, but this painfully dragged-out perishing repulsed Kelron. And it was absolutely senseless since Silverian didn't talk. 

The bloodsucker finally ceased his useless actions. The power of the few drops of blood was already used up and left the creature gaunt and ashen again.

"What was it you were you saying, human? That I should behave and talk to your master to escape more pain?" Silverian hissed. "I will never do such a thing! And you should ask yourself something: what would you do if you were in my place?"

"I..." Kelron broke off when he realized what he was about to answer. Of course he would rather endure hell's own punishment than betray his order to their enemies!

Silverian's smile was bitter, showing razor-sharp fangs. "See? You and I have something in common, after all."

Angrily, Kelron turned away before he did something he'd regret later. "That means nothing, you monster!"

"Oh, I think it means a lot... human," Silverian said softly. "And, if you do not want me to die, you have to help me."

"I don't have to do anything!" Kelron bristled and turned back to face the vampire with an angry glare. "Don't you dare to order me around!"

The creature shrugged, although that movement had to cause it pain. "As I said, it must happen voluntarily. Your decision, Kelron."

With some deep breaths Kelron tried to calmed himself, but it was difficult. Damn that monster, it was right! Kelron had no choice!

"Alright," he agreed between clenched teeth and began to pull off his gauntlet. 

Silverian got up from the floor and approached the bars. "This time, a few drops will not suffice," he explained. "I need a whole mouthful at least."

"Greedy bloodsucker," the paladin growled and began to pull off the entire arm piece of his armor. He rolled up his shirt sleeve and then cut a thin line with his dagger into the flesh of his lower arm. The blade was so sharp that he didn't feel any pain. Before the blood could drip onto the floor, he held his arm through the cell bars. 

"If you take more than you need, you're going to regret it," Kelron warned.

But Silverian didn't seem to hear him at all. Like someone dying of thirst, because that's how it was, the vampire lunged at Kelron's arm and caught the already falling drops of blood with its tongue before it started to suck at the wound.

Like last time, the paladin didn't feel any real pain, just that strange burning. On the contrary: the longer Silverian drank, eyes closed and with an expression of rapture, the more heat filled him. Silverian's mouth and tongue seemed to brand his skin and make his blood boil. Just as the vampire opened its eyes again and looked at Kelron, the paladin realized to his horror that the strange heat had aroused him. 

"Let go of me, damnit!" Kelron pulled away his arm and finally felt some pain that dampened his arousal, much to his relief.

Silverian's red eyes seemed to look into his very heart and see every little secret; there was no escape. The vampire smiled knowingly. "Thank you; that felt good."

"Forget it!" Kelron pressed his hand over the wound to stop the bleeding and berated himself for not thinking ahead and bringing some dressings. Blood stains on his shirt would surely raise some unwanted questions.

"I will not." The vampire looked thoughtful for a moment, before it ripped a piece of cloth from his already tattered garments and held it out to Kelron. "Here. It is better than nothing."

Kelron looked at it suspiciously, but the piece of cloth was clean and free of any vampire blood. He took it and carefully dressed the wound on his arm while he realized that it had come to a point where the bloodsucker was offering him help – and he was taking it. And even worse, he had almost thanked it.

The vampire had licked around its mouth like a cat to catch every remaining drop of blood. "There is something else you need to know," it said. "When one of our kind drinks three times in a row from the same human, a special bond is formed."

"What kind of bond?" the paladin demanded to know, putting his arm piece and gauntlet back on. "And don't tell me I'm going to be your slave after that! In that case, you're not getting a single drop from me again."

"No, it is the other way around. A vampire cannot drink from another human again after that."

"Your fairytales don't get any better. And what do you do if that special human dies?"

"It would weaken the vampire very much, maybe even kill him, and because of that risk we try to avoid this bond. And, since I do not feel any desire to be dependent on you, you should better see to it that I get the blood of another human next time."

Kelron crossed his arms in front of his chest. "And if not? It looks like I would gain immense power over you."

Silverian shrugged, the movement far more fluid than before. "Then I am going to die sooner or later. I will not drink for you a third time."

"Well," Kelron allowed. "I'll see what I can to. But my warden will only allow it if you talk."

"Waragus does not concern me," Silverian replied, unfazed. "It is your decision."

Kelron narrowed his eyes. "Are you trying to manipulate me again? It won't work!"

"Oh, Kelron, you have no idea," Silverian answered with a baleful smile. The voice was velvety and soft again. "I know very well what you felt when I drank your blood. It was not uncomfortable at all, was it? We do not just take, we also give something back."

Kelron felt blood rushing to his face. "I don't want anything from you, understood? You can stop those tricks of yours!"

"Oh, and here I thought you wanted something very important from me?" Silverian asked softly, gracefully stepping toward the cell bars that separated them. The blood had already done its work and restored the vampire's face to its former beauty. The dark shadows had vanished, and the lips bloomed with a rosy color. Even the hair was silky and shimmering again.

Kelron involuntarily shook his head at his own reaction. What was he thinking? It was just another trick to lure him in! A demonic bloodsucker could never be called beautiful!

But despite this, Kelron had noticed this fact from the very first moment, even if he hadn't consciously thought about it. The vampire's beauty had been of an impersonal nature, reminding him of a statue or a painting. But now the soft light of the torches was dancing on the white skin, giving it a warm glow. The shredded clothing revealed more than it concealed while the long silver hair followed every curve of the body like a veil. 

Silverian wasn't just lifeless perfection anymore.

He was temptation.

"I just want you to tell me where Lord Valendar hides," Kelron declared with a hoarse voice while he feverishly tried to rid his thoughts of these sinful, absurd things. It was just another trick! But he wouldn't fall for it.

"I will – you know my conditions. I would not offer this to just anyone, Kelron, but you have proven to be far more honorable that those other self-righteous paladins," Silverian whispered. "And even if you deny it: You do care about me."

"Don't go getting any ideas!" Kelron growled and hastily turned away to avoid those penetrating looks that unsettled him even more than Silverian's whole appearance. He decided to find some new clothing for the vampire as soon as possible. "The more you try to gain my sympathy, the more angry you're making me!"

"We both do know that you are not angry with me but with yourself." Silverian's voice was like a soft caress, making the paladin shiver. "But you do not have to be angry about having a heart, Kelron. The others may be cold and emotionless, but you are not. I knew it right from the beginning."

Kelron snorted in disgust. "Don't be ridiculous! A monster like you understands feelings even less than honor. That's what separates your kind from humans!"

"Really? We would never torture someone, much less a helpless person."

Angrily, Kelron turned around again. "Is that so? And what about my home village Tramentir? What about the countless deaths back then? Your Lord Valendar killed my father who tried to protect me!"

"Your father had a weapon and attacked Valendar, not the other way around," Silverian answered calmly. "It was self-defense."

"That is… how do you know that? I never told you about this!"

Silverian waved his hand dismissively. "I was with Lord Valendar on his campaign and saw it. And there is something else: he rescued you back then."

"What are you talking about? A wall fell down on me and the paladins found me…"

Silverian shook his head. "Before the wall could fall down and bury you, Valendar pulled you away from it. You had lost consciousness, and he carefully carried you to one of the houses still intact. I still remember what he said when some of us warned him not to leave you there. 'This boy with the silver eyes will grow strong enough to decide what he wants to do. Even if he chooses to be our enemy, it is his right.' After that, we left." He hesitated. "I was not sure at first if you really were that child, but Valendar was right: your eyes do have a kind of gray color that looks silvery, given the right light. The color of our death."

Kelron gaped at the vampire, completely at a loss for words. His thoughts were spinning, and although the voice of reason reminded him of the teachings of his order and the fact that vampires were all liars, something deep inside him insisted that Silverian had been telling the truth. Rescued by a vampire… no, it couldn't be!

"Be quiet, damn you!" Kelron shouted. "I don't want to hear your lies!"

"And what if it is true? What if everything the paladins told you were lies? Could you still follow their teachings?" Silverian's eyes held Kelron's. "Could you choose the wrong side knowingly?"

"Damnit, shut up!" Blinded by rage, the paladin drew his sword and thrust is through the cell bars. Silverian avoided it easily and then hit hard against Kelron's hand, causing him to let go of his weapon. The vampire took up the sword and smiled. Since the hilt was wrapped in leather, he could touch it without burning himself. 

"Now what would your warden say about this? I could cut the silver out of my wounds with this, but then everyone would suspect that you gave me a weapon. And I do not want you to get punished."

Slowly, Silverian pushed the sword through the bars again, blade first, and Kelron hastily grabbed it to put it back into its sheath. He could slap himself for his carelessness, and the words of his old master about getting in serious trouble at some point due to his temper came back to mind.

"If you think you can get out of here this way, you're mistaken!" he grumbled. "I still don't believe one word you said!"

"Believe whatever you want. It does not change the truth," Silverian replied, turning away with a shrug. "But you could ask Valendar yourself, if you take up my offer."

Kelron didn't reply. But he was resolved not to tell Waragus about any of this. He had to fight this inner battle on his own.

 

To be continued...


	4. Promise

Kelron was unable to sleep during the following day. He had retreated to his room after breakfast to rest, but was unable to sleep. His thoughts continuously revolved around Silverian and what the vampire had told him.

What if Lord Valendar really had rescued Kelron? What if the vampires just did what every living being would do and fight for their survival? What if the code of honor Kelron had been following his whole life was based on a misassumption? 

All these thoughts were so terrible and blasphemous that Kelron was afraid of them, but once these questions had been raised, they demanded an answer. If he couldn't find a way to ease his doubts, his whole life needed to be questioned. And that was something Kelron couldn't bear.

But those weren't the only things plaguing the paladin. Every time he closed his eyes, Silverian's seductive smile came to mind. It didn't help to remind himself that this attraction wasn't real, just part of the vampire's power, because for Kelron, it felt real. 

The paladins of the Order of the Silver Blade neither took a vow of celibacy nor were they forbidden to marry, but in these trying times, the wardens wanted to avoid unnecessary trouble and strictly separated men and women. There was not a single woman at Castle Northwall; the female paladins, who existed in large numbers, had their own fortresses.

Kelron had always been too busy to waste his time and energy on women. During his training in the capital, he had made some intimate acquaintances with girls, but those encounters had remained shallow. At Castle Northwall, it wasn't uncommon for men to seek intimate relationships with each other, and it was tolerated as long as it didn't affect their work. Kelron had never understood this. He didn't want to feel calloused hands and a coarse, stubbly face against his skin, but preferred tender, cool fingers and satiny hair... soft, warm lips...

The paladin noticed unwanted heat filling his body, and with a discontented growl, he got up from his bed and tried to banish every thought about the vampire. If Silverian had been human, it wouldn't have disturbed Kelron that much, but having indecent thoughts about a damned monster was absolutely shameful.

Kelron went to his wash basin and splashed lots of cold water onto his face. He'd love to take a bath, but he didn't want to endure the looks of the other paladins in the bathing room. He finally decided to put on his armor and work off his frustration with some good fighting practice.

He found Mergil in the courtyard, training the younger paladins and making them sweat profusely. Kelron watched the movements for a while. His old master was agile and fast, depending on his dexterity, not his strength. He seemed to foresee his opponent's movements and reacted accordingly. 

Involuntarily, Kelron was reminded of the imprisoned bloodsucker, and he shook his head to clear his thoughts. How dare he compare his beloved and admired master with that creature! Nevertheless, there was a similarity in their way of reacting to an opponent. And as much as he hated to admit it, Kelron's abilities were inferior to both.

"Ah, my boy! How about some fighting practice? I think you could use the exercise." Mergil had spotted him and stopped to make a challenging gesture. "Take a wooden sword and show me that you haven’t forgotten everything I've taught you."

"With pleasure, Master." Without further ado, Kelron grabbed a practice sword from its stand and took a few swings to test the balance and warm himself up. Then he took up his fighting position.

The other students cleared the area to watch the exciting match that undoubtedly was about to begin. Mergil remained calm and concentrated, his eyes fixed on Kelron. For a moment, both men stood motionlessly, then the old master attacked.

Kelron had his difficulties countering the strikes and realised he was defending without any chance for attacking.

'Pathetic.' 

Silverian's voice echoed in his mind, and Kelron clenched his teeth. No, he wanted to become stronger and quicker to defeat his enemies. One day, he would face Lord Valendar and challenge him to a fight. And on that very day, he would rid the world of a great evil.

'Lord Valendar rescued you.'

Hate and anger boiling inside him, Kelron almost missed parrying the next strike and was forced to retreat. Blind rage was a bad companion in battle, when it came to getting the upper hand against Mergil. Kelron forced himself to take a deep breath and concentrate solely on the moment.

"When you fight against one opponent, you mustn't see all of your enemies in him," Mergil reminded him as they circled each other. "Don't fight with your heart, just with your head."

This was easier said than done. As much as the younger paladin tried to suppress his emotions, he was still failing.

'But you do not have to be angry about having a heart, Kelron. The others may be cold and emotionless, but you are not.'

Once again Silverian's words filled his mind as he tried to banish that memory. What good was there in having feelings? They were just in his way and prevented him from improving. Kelron had to follow his masters' examples and forget any emotion.

Once again, he was reminded of Silverian's wounds and Waragus' almost sadistic smile. That had been no indifference, no lacking compassion, but sheer pleasure by torturing others. It was simply dreadful, and Kelron didn't want to follow that example under any circumstance.

But what about Mergil? Was he truly indifferent to the things happening in the dungeon? It seemed so. He still didn't truly believe in the success Waragus was hoping for, but he also had told Kelron that hunger and pain would make the vampire talk eventually.

No one would treat an animal like this, but a vampire was something different. It was a disgusting thing, unworthy of existence. 

'We would never torture someone, much less a helpless person.'

With a cry, Kelron attacked. He didn't have the faintest idea what drove him, but the fresh rage inside him gave him energy. He used his advantage of strength and height to force Mergil to retreat a few steps. The old master didn't show any openings in his defence, but there was no chance for him to counterattack either.

The bystanders gasped as the blades met again, locking at the quillons and letting the opponents stand still in a silent match of power. Kelron looked into Mergil's surprised face, just a palm away from his own, and suddenly everything seemed easy. He knew exactly what his master was going to do.

Seconds later, it happened. Mergil turned his weapon to free himself and disarm Kelron, but his student took a step back and lashed out. The blunt blade hit Mergil's lower arm.

The old master stopped and then raised his sword in ritual acknowledgement. "Well done, Kelron," he declared while their audience applauded. "My teachings prove to be fruitful at last. You predicted my last move."

Kelron nodded a bit breathlessly, as surprised as his master. "I just hope I will manage to do so in a real fight."

"You will," Mergil assured him and gave his wooden sword to a squire. "But I'd like to know why you were able to do this just now, although you don't train regularly at the moment."

Kelron shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I was lucky. Although..." He hesitated.

"Although?" Mergil urged.

Kelron put his practice sword back into its stand and returned to his master, who’d just commanded the other paladins to continue with their usual training.

"Master, there's something I need to know," Kelron started hesitantly. Although he feared the answer, he needed to be sure. "Back then, when you found me in the village... where was I exactly?"

Mergil gazed at him with furrowed brows. "You were in one of the few houses that hadn't been burned to the ground. You were unconscious, but uninjured. Why do you want to know now?"

Kelron stared at him in shock. "Are you sure I wasn’t lying underneath a crumbled wall?"

His old master shook his head. "No. It almost seemed as if someone had put you there for safety."

With an unsteady hand, Kelron rubbed over his eyes. "It is true then..."

"Boy, are you alright?" Mergil asked worriedly. "You are quite pale."

"Don't worry," Kelron muttered. "I'm sorry, but I have to go."

Mergil watched the young paladin cross the courtyard to get back into the fortress. "Seems like he's finally growing up," the old master mumbled with an almost melancholy smile before he returned to his students.

 

As soon as Kelron had left the courtyard, he leaned against a cool stone wall and tried to calm himself with deep breaths. But it didn't work. There was just one thought whirling around in his head: Silverian had been right. Although reason reminded him that the vampire might have seen him in that house and invented the whole story, there was still the question as to who had rescued Kelron then. And even if it was true, Kelron didn't have to blindly believe everything else Silverian had told him.  
No, he wasn't yet prepared to see his whole world turned upside down.

Still a bit weak in the knees, the paladin stumbled upstairs to his chamber. Although sleep was even more elusive now, he didn't want to face company in his troubled state of mind. The other paladins would just ask questions he couldn't even answer for himself.

 

When Silverian awoke that evening, Kelron had already been sitting for a while at his post and brooding. The vampire got up from the floor and looked at him inquiringly.

"You know I did not lie." It was a statement, not a question, but there was no triumph in it.

Kelron finally looked up. Thanks to the blood, Silverian still looked healthy, but this would surely change with the next torture. This realization was followed by the alarming thought that Waragus couldn't possible overlook the vampire's condition. He inevitably would come to the conclusion that Kelron had fed him against orders.

The paladin darkly stared at the vampire. "But I still have enough reason to wish for your miserable existence to end."

"But you cannot kill the truth, Kelron. It will haunt you regardless of what you do to me," Silverian replied calmly. "But the longer you ignore it, the worse it will get."

"Worse? How could it possibly get worse?" Kelron replied heatedly. "You managed to unsettle me so much that I don't know what to think anymore!" 

Silverian smiled slightly. "No one can tell you what to think, Kelron, neither I nor your masters. And deep down you know what is right or wrong, I am sure."

"Stop giving me advice!" Kelron growled. "If I..." He cut himself off as he heard footsteps on the stairs. 

It was Waragus, coming for his usual visit. 

Kelron got up from his chair and grabbed the key to catch his master in front of the door. Waragus looked at him surprised and stopped on the last step of the stairs. "What is it, Kelron?"

The younger paladin closed the door behind him; if Waragus chastised him, the vampire needn't see it. He wanted to keep one last shred of dignity at least. He sprang to attention.

"Master, I have a report to make. I gave the prisoner some of my blood."

Waragus' bushy eyebrows raised into his hairline. "I gave you no such order."

"I know. But I thought it was a good way to gain his trust. Aside from that, he would have fallen into a rigor sooner or later."

"I guess you're right. Therefore I order you to continue to feed the bloodsucker," Waragus decided. "It has to realize that death is no escape for it."

Kelron hesitated. "Master, that's not possible. He told me that if a vampire drinks three times in a row from the same human..."

"Then what? Come on, tell me!" the warden demanded.

"Then the vampire won't be able to drink from another human ever again," Kelron finished and knew at the same instant that it had been a mistake to speak up in the first place.

"Really? I guess we will test that. You'll continue to feed the vampire, and if we let it go as soon as it tells us everything, it will die nevertheless if it really can't digest any blood beside yours." Waragus contentedly rubbed his hands.

"But Master..."

"No arguments! And now open the door, it's time for the interrogation."

Kelron had no choice but to obey. Moments later, the paladins with the molten silver followed.

This time, it took much longer, Kelron noticed, although he heard no screams at all. That didn't put him at ease, however, and when the paladins dragged a once again unconscious vampire to the cell, he had to assume the worst. 

"I think it's about to fall into a rigor," Waragus said and gave Kelron the cell key. "Feed it a little bit of blood as long as it's unconscious. Then you wait to see what will happen."

"Master, what...," Kelron protested but was cut off again.

"I won't stand here and watch this, and it's better if the beast thinks I know nothing of it," the warden explained. "Report to me tomorrow morning." Then he left the dungeon.

Kelron stared at the cell key in his hand then looked at the vampire lying on the floor. He was barely breathing; whatever Waragus had done this time, it had used up all of Kelron's blood. The paladin hesitated for a moment before he unlocked the cell door and knelt down beside the vampire.

"Silverian?" he asked softly. When he got no answer, he carefully touched the vampire's shoulder and then turned him on his back. 

It was a horrible sight. Silverian's face was as ashen and gaunt as a bare skull. He didn't have any fresh wounds, but his mouth was unnaturally red. A drop of cooled-off silver stuck to the corner of his mouth.

Kelron felt bile rising in his throat, and for a moment he had to turn away and take a deep breath to pull himself together.

Waragus had made Silverian drink the molten silver! It was no wonder the vampire hadn't been screaming.

Finally, Kelron had steadied himself enough to think. If he didn't do anything now, the vampire would fall into a rigor for sure or even die – and then Kelron would never learn where Lord Valendar was hiding. He had to keep the vampire alive at any cost.

Quickly, he took off his left gauntlet and arm piece and drew his silver dagger. With its tip, he carefully scrapped the silver from Silverian's mouth before he used it to cut his own skin at the underside of his arm. But the blood flowed very slowly and clotted too fast, forcing Kelron to make another little cut.

"Come on, drink!" he murmured. "I want to rescue you, you hear me? I won't harm you, and I won't let Waragus continue to torture you. You tell me where Valendar is hiding, and then we both get out of here. Do you hear me, Silverian? I promise. I swear it on my honor as a paladin, whatever it is worth."

Only now as he said this aloud, Kelron truly realized what kind of decision he had just made. He was about to betray his order and his masters, but, strangely enough, he wasn't as reluctant to do so as he had thought. Deep down he knew that a terrible injustice was going on and that he mustn't stand aside and watch any longer. Despite this, it was his only chance to get to Lord Valendar. Kelron wanted to know the whole truth, wanted to face the nightmare of his childhood and proudly challenge it to a duel.

After what seemed an eternity, Silverian finally began to suck at the wound. Kelron's arm was hurting already and he was feeling a bit faint, but he didn't pull away. These little scratches were nothing against real wounds on a battlefield.

Instead, a hot wave of desire washed over him, fogging his mind like strong wine on an empty stomach. The burning ran from his arm through his whole body and made him gasp. 

"Damnit, stop that!" Kelron growled between clenched teeth although he wasn't even sure that the vampire was doing this on purpose. All he knew was that Silverian livened up with every drop of blood and finally opened his eyes. 

Kelron pulled away his arm and looked down at the vampire, breathing heavily. Silverian's lips, now colored darkly from the blood, formed an almost dreamy smile. A dark veil lay over his eyes.

It took Kelron all of his willpower not to lean down and kiss Silverian.

But the magical moment was quickly over. The vampire blinked in confusion, then he sat up swiftly and stared at Kelron in horror. "You gave me your blood once again!"

"It was the only way to save you," the paladin defended himself. "And there was no time to ask someone else if he is willing – which I doubt altogether."

The vampire rubbed over his mouth, his face darkening. "You should have let me die."

Kelron shook his head. "Not before I know where Lord Valendar's hideout is. You're going take me to him, and I will follow you alone."

"You promise?" Silverian whispered.

"I promise," Kelron repeated his oath, his resolve growing stronger with every moment. Then he got up and held out his hand to the vampire.

Silverian hesitated for a second, and then he let himself be pulled up. 

Kelron left the cell to grab the clothes he had prepared earlier and gave them to the vampire. "Put these on. I'll take care of the guard outside," he said. He wanted to rush to the door, but stopped himself to look at the vampire. "Do I have your oath you will not harm me and will safely lead me to Valendar?"

Silverian nodded. "You have it."

The paladin unsheathed his sword, unlocked the door and sneaked upstairs. Silently, he opened the door leading to the empty, moonlit courtyard. With a hard hit on the head, he rendered the guard next to the door unconscious.

Silverian had followed him, and together they used the cover of the walls to run across the courtyard toward the gate. It was necessary to distract the guards there, but Kelron quickly thought of something. He grabbed one of the buckets from the well and threw it against the opposite site of the wall.

As he had hoped, the guards got suspicious and started to search the courtyard. Crouching, Silverian and Kelron darted through the gate and circled the outer wall until they were out of sight of the sentries on the towers.

"Which way?" Kelron asked softly.

The vampire pointed toward the mountain chain barely visible on the horizon. "The big forest at the foot of the Shadow Mountains. On horseback we will need at least a week, much longer on foot."

"We'll get some horses," Kelron declared. "There are some farms along the way. I have some money with me."

"But the farmers will recognise you as a paladin," Silverian reminded him. "It may be better if you leave your armor behind."

That idea wasn't thrilling, but the vampire was right. Kelron couldn't risk anybody finding out where he was going. As silently as possible, he began to strip off his armor and then covered it with earth and leaves. He kept just his sword and dagger.

"Let's go," he whispered.

 

To be continued...


	5. Truth

They moved forward quickly. Early the next morning, Kelron was able to buy two horses and some supplies at one of the farms. The farmer, who knew the paladins, of course, didn't get suspicious; on the contrary, he pointed out to Kelron that a wandering young swordsman might find work at Castle Northwall. Kelron thanked him politely and took the way back toward the castle before he changed direction behind a hill to avoid any suspicion.

He met Silverian in a little cave underneath some old, gnarled trees. The vampire had made himself comfortable there and was sleeping soundly. Kelron had of course made haste to avoid leaving the vampire alone in daylight too long. They had already discussed during the previous night how to make their way as fast as possible, but if they only travelled at night, they had to hide well during the day. But first, they needed to get more distance between them and the castle, and Kelron had suggested that they continue to travel by daylight. Silverian had hesitated a bit before agreeing.

The paladin was still a bit baffled by the trust the vampire was putting in him. After all, Silverian had no guarantees that Kelron wouldn't just deliver him to the paladins. But of course, Kelron had no such intention. He took the oath he had sworn seriously, including his resolve to protect the creature that was still his enemy. 

Kelron knotted the second horse's reigns at his own mount's tack before he carefully lifted the vampire up. Silverian was very light, thus it was no problem for the paladin to hold him in the saddle and continue the journey.

 

Kelron had just a vague direction to follow, but it was enough for the time being. He stopped only for short periods to eat and rest a bit, and as dusk fell, he was sure he had covered quite some distance. And even more importantly, he hadn't encountered anyone so far or spotted any pursuers.

The paladin noticed that Silverian was slowly awakening. He seemed to be disoriented for a moment, before he pulled down the hood he was wearing to hide his glowing hair and looked back at Kelron.

"I hope I was not too heavy for you?" he inquired.

"Not at all," Kelron replied and reigned in his horse. "But I think it'll be more comfortable if you ride on your own now."

"And there you are, worried about me once again," Silverian teased him and dismounted gracefully. He untied the reins of the second horse and mounted it in a fluid motion. "I would like to speed up our pace for a while, if you are not too tired."

"I'll survive another sleepless night," the paladin said. "Or rather, a sleepless day. It seems I’ll have to adapt to your sleeping habits for a while longer."

Silverian smiled. "I appreciate that."

Then he drove his horse into a gallop and flew across the plain stretching before them.

Kelron followed him.

 

They stopped about two hours before dawn to rest for the day, when they had reached a little forest with a clear river. Kelron tended to the horses and ate some of the food. It was too risky to start a campfire, but it was warm enough that he didn't need one. Finally, he leaned against a tree and watched the vampire who had, despite the cold, decided to take a bath in the river to get rid of the dungeon's filth. 

After some time, he came out of the water again. Every drop of water made Silverian's skin glow in the light of the fading moon peeking through the treetops, and mercifully covered up the wounds. The wet hair flowed around him like silk and emphasized every contour of his body. 

Kelron realized he was staring and forced himself to lower his eyes. When he looked up again, the vampire had at least pulled on his boots and pants again and had tamed the still damp hair in a long braid.

"I need your dagger, Kelron," Silverian said softly. "I have to get the silver out of my skin."

Kelron flinched involuntarily as he thought about the only possibility to achieve this. He unsheathed his weapon and was about to give it to the vampire, but hesitated. "Sit down, I'll do it."

Silverian did as he was told. "Now you finally get your chance to cut me up," he joked weakly, but Kelron gave him a dark look. "Hold still. I'll start with the smaller wounds."

Bit by bit, he scratched the infused silver from the vampire's skin. Silverian didn't make any noise, although his facial expressions and the wetness gleaming in his eyes betrayed him. But he seemed to be resolved not to show any weakness in front of the paladin.

Finally, just the crest of the paladins remained. Kelron wanted to start on it, but Silverian shook his head. "The sun is about to rise, and I need blood."

Without another word, Kelron pulled up his sleeve and was about to make a cut with his dagger, but the vampire took his arm and lowered his lips onto the tender skin at the underside of the forearm. 

Kelron felt a little prick as sharp fangs pierced his flesh, but the next moment, he had forgotten any uncomfortable feelings. A now all too familiar heat raced up his arm to fill his whole body, and he tried hard not to moan. 

Silverian drank a few gulps, but not enough to make Kelron dizzy. Finally, he licked almost tenderly over the little wound, making the paladin shiver, and then let go.

"Try to get some rest," Silverian advised him before he lay down and closed his eyes. The first rays of sunlight fell through the thick foliage overhead.

Kelron dressed his arm and decided it was best to complete his previous task – especially, since Silverian wouldn't feel it now. He turned the vampire on his back and removed the silver from the wound bit by bit. Thankfully, Silverian didn't move.

After what seemed an eternity, Kelron was finally finished. The wound on Silverian's chest looked even worse than before, but now it could finally heal and restore the former immaculate beauty of the fair skin. Carefully, he wrapped the vampire's shirt around Silverian and continued to just hold him. He just now felt the bone-deep weariness, intensified by the blood loss. He leaned back and closed his eyes.

 

The following nights went by uneventfully. The two men rode as fast as their horses could go, until they found a safe place in the mornings. Silverian held himself back with the drinking, and Kelron bravely trained his self-control, although it got harder and harder.

Finally, they reached the border of the forest at the foot of the Shadow Mountains. Old, gigantic trees loomed above them and barely let any light through. Kelron felt uneasy travelling through this darkness where no moon and stars were visible, but he had no choice. Carefully and warily looking around, he followed Silverian. 

They continued on foot; the vampire told Kelron that the horses would be taken care of, but the forest was too thick to admit such large creatures. Indeed they had to fight though thorny undergrowth and climb over fallen tree trunks. It almost seemed as if no human or vampire had ever set foot in this forest. 

When Kelron asked Silverian about this, the vampire replied, "This forest is special. You cannot cut down the trees to make a way or follow a map. When you enter it, you have to know exactly where you are heading, or you walk around in circles."

That thought wasn't comforting in the least, and Kelron hoped that the vampire really knew where they were going. 

They seemed to wander for countless hours until they reached a clearing. It was so sudden that Kelron almost stumbled over some roots. A few dozen feet in front of them stood a castle. The walls were covered with vines, and sharp spires rose into the sky, but were not higher than the highest trees. There was light behind some windows.

"This is the fortress Drakvil," Silverian declared. "Come."

As they approached the building, four silhouettes became visible in the shadows. They were wearing spiked armor and jagged swords, no doubt warriors of Lord Valendar.

Instinctively, Kelron reached for his sword but then forced himself to stay calm. The vampire's word protected him, but he had to keep himself from doing rash and foolish things.

The warriors seemed to recognize Silverian because they bowed before him and gave way. Silverian exchanged a few quiet words with them that Kelron didn't understand, but they seemed to be orders not to harm the paladin because the warriors finally escorted them to the gate and opened it.

The hall that lay beyond was illuminated by candles, the soft light reflecting on the black, polished stone of the floor. Some people were moving about; after a few moments, Kelron realized they were humans. All of them seemed healthy and well-kept and didn't look like slaves or prisoners at all, he had to admit. They bowed before Silverian, but their body language told of respect, not fear.

So the vampire had really spoken the truth.

Kelron followed Silverian through corridors and upstairs until they reached a door.

"You can rest and freshen up here," the vampire said. "I do not ask you to surrender your weapons, but if you make use of them or leave this room, I will consider our agreement null and void. I will go now and inform Lord Valendar. I am sure he will see you later."

The paladin nodded and entered the room. It was also illuminated by candles, and he could make out a spacious bed and elegant furniture worthy of a noble. Then he turned around again to face the vampire.

"And what about you? If Lord Valendar kills me – which I'm planning to prevent..."

"Let me worry about that," Silverian replied with an enigmatic smile. "I will see you later, Kelron." He closed the door.

Kelron had almost followed him, but kept himself from doing so. He had to wait and prepare himself physically and mentally. If he really wanted to face Lord Valendar, he had to accumulate all of his energy.

The paladin explored his luxurious lodgings and found a bathroom with a tub behind a door, a luxury of which he thoroughly made use of. He shaved and made himself presentable again, before he lay down on the bed and tried to collect himself. He was tired from the journey, but sleeping was out of the question. 

After all, the moment he had waited for his whole life was about to happen.

 

A few hours later, a knock sounded on the door, breaking the silence. Kelron got up from the bed, grabbed his sword and opened the door. A vampire in an elegant, red robe stood in front of it. He was as tall as Kelron and of similar build, red eyes glowing with a challenge in a face that seemed even paler due to the long, black hair framing it.

"Paladin Kelron, I am Ardan, Lord Valendar's representative and leader of his army. Please follow me."

Kelron did as he was told, watching Ardan warily. The vampire was every inch a soldier, and suddenly Kelron hoped that Lord Valendar wasn't an even better fighter. 

As if he had heard Kelron's thoughts, Ardan turned around and smiled grimly. "You are afraid."

Kelron's face darkened. "Do you want to challenge me?"

Ardan laughed. "Me? I would have beaten you after two minutes, human. But unfortunately, my Lord gave me strict orders."

"And you don't like them," Kelron concluded.

"Do not worry about that. And I do not question my Lord's orders," Ardan declared proudly.

That statement involuntarily made Kelron curious. "Why do you follow him?"

"Because he is a wise and just leader and we all believe in him to lead us into a better future." Ardan glared at Kelron. "Should you defeat him, you will defeat us all, human. But that is exactly why you are here, is it not?"

Before Kelron could think of an answer, Ardan stopped in front of a large double door, guarded by two soldiers. At Ardan's sign, they opened the gate.

The paladin took a deep breath, straightened his body and entered the large hall beyond.

It was beyond a doubt Lord Valendar's throne room. Graceful, marble columns held a high ceiling, and the stony walls were covered with tapestries and illuminated with large, ornate candleholders. In the middle of the hall stood a throne, flanked by chairs that formed a semicircle. 

The first chair to the right of the throne was empty, and Ardan took his place there. The other vampires, male and female alike, all wearing long, dark robes and cold, ageless faces, looked at Kelron with open anger. Silverian was not among them.

On the throne sat a figure in red armor. A long, velvety coat, colored in deepest crimson, framed it like a sea made of blood. He looked at Kelron motionlessly, his gloved hand on the hilt of his jagged sword.

Kelron felt his heart starting to race while the memories surfaced again. Here it was, the figure out of his nightmares. And this time, he wasn't a helpless child, but a paladin and ready to stand his ground against his own fear.

"Paladin Kelron?" Lord Valendar's voice, hard and awe-inducing, echoed from the walls. "Come closer."

Kelron did as he was told, his gaze fixed on his opponent. "Lord Valendar, I'm here to challenge you to a duel," he declared with a surprisingly firm voice.

The vampire lord hesitated briefly, and then he rose from his throne. As he approached Kelron, the paladin realized that Lord Valendar wasn't the gigantic monster he remembered, but actually a bit shorter than himself.

"You are firmly resolved to challenge me?" the lord asked. "Although you already should know that there is no reason for it?"

"There are enough reasons!" Kelron replied with a frown. "And even if you vampires aren't the monsters I took you for, I still trust in my Master's teachings. He always said, 'You don't know someone for real until you have crossed blades with him.'

"So be it." Valendar raised his sword and turned to the other vampires. "You are the witnesses to this fight."

They nodded in agreement, although it was clear that none of them were happy about this turn of events. 

Kelron drew his own sword and took up a fighting position. His thoughts raced, but he forced himself to stay calm and closely watch his opponent. He wouldn't be able to fight without any passion, but he had to channel his energy in the right direction and not fall into a blind rage.

For endless seconds, their eyes fought a silent duel before something flashed in the lord's red eyes. Kelron reacted immediately and parried the first strike, then the second, before he started a counterattack. 

Again and again, their blades met. Both men evaded each others' strikes, stepped forward and backward, and assessed each other again. It was like a dance, waiting for a sign of weakness. Kelron knew that Lord Valendar held back to find out how good Kelron really was. So it was important not to show his full abilities. 

Time stood still. Kelron felt neither tired nor afraid to lose the fight. There was nothing else left besides the blades of their weapons and the eyes of his enemy. But this couldn't go on forever; sooner or later one of them had to make a mistake, and that one would probably be Kelron. He had to get the upper hand before it was too late.

He had to find the ultimate motivation.

But for what was the paladin really fighting? What good was it if he won? Even if he killed Lord Valendar, it wouldn't bring back his dead father or the villagers. Without their leader, the vampires would succumb to the paladins' power sooner or later – as Ardan had reminded him.

But if Kelron died, Silverian had to die, too.

Immediately, a hot wave of righteous anger wept over Kelron. He was just a little pawn on a very big game board and surely not the great hero who could save everyone. But he wanted to save at least Silverian. Make amends for the crimes committed against him. Protect him. 

Kelron's life wasn't his own any longer.

Lord Valendar was clearly surprised at the fierceness of the attack and reacted just a fraction of a second too late. Kelron's sword pierced the vampire's shoulder through the armor. He stumbled backward and almost let go of his weapon, but managed to parry the next strike. 

But Kelron wasn't about to be stopped. His movements grew faster as he was able to predict more accurately what the vampire lord would do next. Never before had he been this clear-minded and calm, but it wasn't because he suppressed his feelings like his master had taught him for years. It was because he was fighting for someone else, not just for his own life.

Valendar took two steps backwards, and Kelron took the chance. With a powerful strike, he disarmed the vampire lord.

Both of them stopped moving, breathing hard. Ardan and the other vampires had jumped up from their chairs and stared at Kelron, but none of them made an attempt to intervene.

"Just end it," Valendar told him quietly. "It is your right, Kelron."

But the paladin shook his head. "Not before I know the whole truth. I want to know everything about your kind and your motivations. And I want to see your face."

The vampire lord hesitated, before raising his uninjured hand to pull off his helmet. Silvery-white hair spilled from underneath it.

Kelron gasped in shock as he looked into an all too familiar face. "That... that can't be!"

"But it is the truth," the vampire in front of him replied. "I am Lord Silverian Valendar."

 

To be continued...


	6. Hope

"But..." Kelron just couldn't believe it. The vampire who had gotten so terribly close to him, and the sinister bloodsucker he had wanted to defeat for years – they were one and the same!

"But... why? Why did you lead me here when you knew my intentions?" he gasped. 

Silverian's gaze was solemn. "I wanted to see if you would keep your word and really be able to defeat me. I have searched for a very long time for someone like you, Kelron. Someone who can end this conflict."

"You don't understand! I fought for you! I wanted to win so I could save you!" Kelron shouted, feeling an anguish he had never known before. "I wanted to survive this duel to prevent you from dying!"

"And why would you care?" There was a sudden tiredness in the vampire's soft voice. "You could have killed me and would be free to go back to the humans – knowing that our kind keeps their word until the very last."

Kelron didn't have an answer. The terrible truth squeezed his heart with its icy claws, breaking his whole world apart bit by bit with every passing moment. He had already given up everything and left it behind to follow the only thing that still made sense - just to realize now that he had imagined that as well. 

Despite all this, he wasn't able to kill Silverian. Kelron's promise was binding, and he just didn't want to end the vampire's existence. He had been set on killing the cruel bloodsucker who had made him into the person he was now. But instead, the paladin was obliged by his own wish to protect that very same creature.

Silverian had now changed Kelron's life for a second time and just as irreversibly.

Kelron let go of his sword. "Why?" he whispered. "Why all this? Why me?"

Silverian approached him until Kelron had no choice but to look at him. "Because I wanted to prove that deadly enemies can become allies. That a paladin can accept our kind as living beings equal to himself. That this whole feud is unnecessary. For all that, I am willing to take any risk. When I saw you for the first time, I just knew it, Kelron. I knew that you would be the one to change the future of humans and vampires alike."

"And why did you kill my father? So that I would grow up to hate you for sure?" Kelron asked incredulously.

Silverian nodded. "Partly. I told you the truth when I said that I defended myself when your father attacked me. And I regret every victim I had to kill on my way. War means killing or getting killed."

Kelron turned away, a shudder racking his whole body. "You used me from the very beginning!" he hissed. "I was nothing more than your little experiment!"

"No, Kelron. You were my hope. You still are."

"Hope?" The paladin laughed bitterly. "If I go now, you're going to die. And you have no assurance that anything will change. On the contrary, I now have confirmation that bloodsuckers just toy with us humans and that Lord Valendar is the coldest and most insidious bastard the world has every known – and that he will perish thanks to me."

"Do not talk like that to our Lord!" Ardan barked at him. "He saved you; do not dare to forget that!"

"And I rescued him from the dungeon, so we're even," Kelron replied. "I'm going." He turned around and walked toward the large double doors.

Before he could leave the hall, the doors were pushed open, and a warrior rushed in. He hastily bowed and reported, "My Lord, we are being attacked!"

"Impossible," Silverian replied with a frown. "Nobody knows that we are here."

"But it is true nevertheless," the warrior insisted. "The sentry located at the edge of the forest just reported a group of paladins destroying the forest. They realized that their weapons are useless, so they set the trees on fire!"

"So we were being followed all along. Damn them! Send everyone to their posts! We have to defend the fortress and extinguish the fire," Silverian ordered the warrior who bowed and ran off. Then he turned back to Kelron. "Did you know about this?" 

The paladin turned around. "No. I'd never be so dishonorable."

Silverian briefly narrowed his eyes, but then he nodded. "I believe you. But I cannot allow you to leave under these circumstances. You will stay in your room until this matter is decided."

"But..."

"No buts, Kelron. In the worst case, you can always declare that you were our prisoner, but if you go outside now, the paladins will believe you to be a traitor. I do not want to fight them anymore, but if they attack us, they leave me no choice." Silverian reached down to take his sword from the floor, but his face paled and he clutched his shoulder.

Ardan rushed to his side, took his sword, and supported him. "Are you deaf, human?" he barked at Kelron. "Even now, he still wants to save you, although you do not deserve it! Guards, take the paladin to his room!"

Kelron took up his own weapon and sheathed it before following the guards without protest. A million thoughts whirled around in his head, and he wanted to leave this horrible place right now. But he knew that it wasn't possible. The paladins would surely see him as a traitor and kill him on the spot. Kelron had, after all, defied a direct order of the warden by releasing the vampire.

The warriors didn't try to take Kelron's sword, but as soon as the paladin was inside his room, he heard the turning of a key in the heavy lock. The metal lining of the door made it impossible to break it down, and a look at the tiny, barred window robbed Kelron of any hope for escape.

No, he had to wait until he was released. Soon, a full-scale war would break out, and he was locked up and unable to partake or even intervene to stop it.

 

Kelron had no idea how much time had passed. It was still dark outside, that was all he could tell. But it couldn't be long until dawn, and as soon as the vampires were asleep, the paladins had no more resistance to face. There wasn't any battle noise, meaning that the paladins hadn't yet reached the castle. Kelron remembered how long it had taken Silverian and himself to cross the forest; the magic trees surely wouldn't make it easy for the invaders even if the paladins used fire. It was also reassuring that no red glow was illuminating the sky yet.

But how long would it take? Days? Or just hours?

Kelron decided to fortify himself with the opulent meal he had found in his room; who knew when he would get the next. The food was accompanied by a delicious wine, and although Kelron was usually careful with strong spirits, he drank a few glasses to relax his frayed nerves.

Just as he was about to empty the last glass, the key was turned in the lock and the door was opened. Kelron immediately reached for his sword, unsure what to expect.

A familiar figure entered. "I think you have sliced me enough for one day," Silverian remarked softly.

"Have I?" Kelron didn't move.

"I will die anyway, Kelron; either in a few hours when the paladins will be here or in the coming months or years because I will not get any more blood. So you do not have to put any effort into it," the vampire said and closed the door behind him. "You have defeated me already."

Kelron noticed that Silverian wasn't wearing his terrifying armor anymore, but a long, dark red robe that shimmered velvety in the candle light. He seemed neither angry nor menacing, but rather like someone who had accepted his inevitable fate. His face was once again sallow and sunken.

"Kelron, despite all this, I want to ask you for your blood one last time – so that I can defend my kind until the very last." Silverian's tone was solemn. "I know I have no right to demand anything from you, but I call upon your honor. You did not kill me during the duel as was your right, but now I am weakened. If this is not a plan of your warden to not only defeat me, but to humiliate me even further, you will grant me this last wish."

Kelron hesitated. He had no desire to help the vampire regain his strength, but Silverian was right. It was dishonorable and cowardly to let a defeated enemy die a slow death.

Kelron put his weapon away. "Agreed," he answered. "And I swear to you that I didn't know anything about this attack. Master Waragus proposed this idea to me, but I refused. My promise is a sacred thing to me, even one made to a bloodsucker."

Silverian nodded. "I know. But now it is too late. Before the sun rises, we will face the paladins. All of this will end tonight – one way or the other."

Kelron didn't say anything, just rolled up his sleeve and offered his arm. He wanted to get this over with as fast as possible.

But the vampire had other plans. Without warning, he shoved Kelron backwards, forcing the paladin to take a few steps back and bump into the edge of the bed. With another shove, Kelron lost his balance and tumbled onto the soft cushions.

"What…" Protesting, Kelron wanted to get up again, but didn't get the chance. With the incredible speed and grace inherent to his race, Silverian climbed onto the bed and bent over Kelron. He didn't touch the paladin, but the glow in his red eyes robbed Kelron of any power to move. He lay motionlessly as the vampire lowered himself onto him, gently turned his head to one side and bit his neck.

Kelron felt like he was burning up. From the tiny wound in his neck flowed the now familiar fire through his body with an intensity yet unknown. There was no pain, no discomfort, just pure lust taking his breath away. Unconsciously, Kelron pulled the vampire closer and held him tightly. It didn't matter anymore that this was his archenemy whom he had been hating his whole life and that he should just grab his sword and finally kill the wretched bloodsucker.

After what seemed an eternity, Silverian let go of him and expertly dressed the wound with a clean cloth he pulled from somewhere on his person.

"Thank you," he whispered and was about to get up. "Now get some rest, Kelron."

But the paladin held him firmly in place. Although his mind screamed a thousand warnings, he ignored them. He would surely go insane if this desire wasn't finally fulfilled.

"Resting is the last thing on my mind! And I don't care if you bewitched me with your bite," Kelron gasped. "If you go now, I'll kill you for sure!"

Silverian looked at him in surprise for a moment before he started to smile. The blood was working already, making his perfect skin glow in the dim light like finest marble – warm, living marble. The hungry glitter in his eyes had given way to another, no less intense fire – a fire that mirrored the burning inside Kelron.

"You do not know what you are asking for," Silverian replied quietly.

"I'm not asking for anything!" Kelron replied. "But you owe me something nevertheless!"

The vampire hesitated before he answered, "You are right. And besides, this is the last night that is left to us."

He reached for the clasps at the collar of his robe, and the soft fabric fell from his shoulders.

Immediately, Kelron caressed the soft, slightly cool skin bared before him. The scars on Silverian's chest had vanished completely, and Kelron kissed the spot where the paladins' crest had been with an almost reverent gentleness. Then his lips kissed their way to the shoulder where the wound from the duel had been.

There was no hesitation, no thinking about what he did. He wanted Silverian, and at the moment, that was all that mattered.

And the next morning, everything would be over either way.

Silverian allowed Kelron to do as he pleased as he attacked the fastenings of the paladin's shirt. 

The paladin shuddered as cool fingertips with sharp claws touched his skin without injuring him. Silverian seemed to be getting eager now as well. He bent down to kiss Kelron on the lips.

Kelron tasted the metallic traces of his own blood, but strangely enough it inflamed the heat of the kiss even more. Hungrily, he kissed Silverian and buried his hands in the silver hair that flowed around them like tangible moonbeams. 

Silverian pulled away once again to gaze deeply into Kelron's eyes. There was a deep seriousness underneath the heat in his red eyes.

"I am asking you one last time: are you sure?" he whispered. "You are not under the spell of my bite, Kelron. You have not been since the third time I drank from you."

"And why should I believe you? Despite all your talk about truth, you omitted the most important things." Kelron hesitated, then combed through Silverian's hair with his fingers to finally grab it and roughly pull the vampire close to him. "The teachings of my order state that there is no greater sin than to fornicate with a vampire. But I won't stop. I hate you, Silverian Valendar, but I won't stop!"

Silverian smiled. "Stubborn human," he murmured and bent down for another kiss that Kelron eagerly returned.

Lust, hate, anger… all those emotions blended into the overwhelming feelings of hunger, passion, and the desire to make the vampire submit completely.

Kelron was about to grab him and turn him around, but Silverian pushed him deeper into the pillows and put one leg on each side of Kelron's hips. The velvety robe was still held by a few laces that Silverian now opened. He didn't wear anything underneath it, and that sight took Kelron's breath away. Once again, he wanted to grab the vampire and pull him down, but gave up when Silverian opened the fastenings of Kelron's pants.

A shudder ran through his body as Kelron felt soft fingertips on his most private parts. He was completely at Silverian's mercy, he now realized, but this thought wasn't as terrifying as it had been before. He just allowed the vampire to continue, and the next moment, he was rewarded with the most incredible of feelings as the vampire lowered himself onto Kelron's arousal. 

Kelron moaned; as cool as the skin was, was as hot as the body surrounding him now.

Silverian made a little noise that was a mixture of lust and pain. He didn't move at first, just gazing down at Kelron with a strange solemnity hidden under the veil of desire.

Kelron was in no shape to think about it because his own body demanded more.

He didn't have to wait long for it.

 

Weak daylight streamed through the windows and woke Kelron up. He blinked a bit disoriented, until he recognized his guest room at the vampire fortress.

There was no trace of Silverian, however, and Kelron was thankful for that. He didn't have the faintest idea what he'd say or do, even more so now with his feelings in far greater disarray than before. The past night had been the most incredible of his life, but however he put it, it still had been a night spent with his sworn enemy.

Kelron swiftly got out of bed and searched for his clothes. A gentle probing at his neck told him that the dressing was still firmly in place, and there was no pain. He put on his sword belt and went to the door to find out if it was still locked. It wasn't, and Kelron left the room. 

The corridor was filled with sunlight, but empty of any living beings. The vampires slept, of course, but even the human servants were nowhere in sight. Kelron recalled his route from yesterday and found his way back to the throne room. There were no guards, and when he opened the large doors, the hall beyond was silent and empty as well.

Kelron's feeling of unease grew as he continued on his way. There were no signs of a fight, so the paladins hadn't stormed the fortress yet. 

Finally, he found another human at the main gate. It was an old man, wearing the insignia of the household steward. 

"What happened?" Kelron asked him.

"His Lordship ordered to attack the paladins during the night, before they had even found their way through the forest," the old man told him." When dawn came, he ordered everyone back into the fortress, but he himself stayed outside. The vampires had to hide in the cellars as well as we humans, although we were instructed to protect them. I was told not to open the gate until I hear his Lordship's voice again."

Kelron frowned. "How long has it been since then?"

"Not long. And it's silent now outside," the old servant murmured worriedly.

"I must get outside immediately," Kelron declared, his own worries worsening.

The old man nodded. "His Lordship told me that if you asked for it, you were free to go. But you better take the back door. Please follow me."

The servant guided Kelron through a few hallways to a little iron gate that he unlocked. When the paladin went through it, he found himself in front of a large hedge that hid the door completely from the outside. Carefully, he squeezed himself through the thick branches and was finally able to see where he was. With his sword drawn, he followed the way along the castle wall toward the main gate.

The sight that presented him there was as horrible as it was surprising: thick smoke rose from the forest that was now parted by a large aisle. There were corpses everywhere, Paladins and vampires alike.

Over three dozen mounted paladins had taken position right in front of the gate and surrounded a lone, familiar figure in red armor and with a sword dripping of blood in his hand.

It was Silverian.

Kelron started to run. A thousand questions were whirling around in his head. Why wasn't Silverian asleep? Had the vampire deceived him this whole time?

Kelron was now close enough to notice everything going on. But he stayed out of sight for the moment. 

The paladin at the head was unmistakably Waragus with his elegant cloak and the standard bearer at his side. Next to him, small, wiry and in battered armor, Kelron recognized Master Mergil.

A little breeze carried some wafts of smoke and the sound of the voices toward Kelron.

"… is true then! The old stories are no fairytales; you standing here in the sunlight is proof enough! So Kelron has sunken this low and succumbed to your hideous allure?" Waragus asked. "I wish I had killed you back in our dungeon!"

"Kelron is the only one of you who has actually understood something," Silverian replied calmly. "And it seems you still argue with the same silly reasons with which you humans caused the war two hundred years ago. But what is it really that drives you? Envy? Fear of death?"

"Fear of your kind!" Waragus shot back. "You make humans your slaves, and what use is a life as long as yours if it is spent in servitude? It's unnatural!"

"It has always been voluntary," Silverian replied. "But there is no use talking to you. You are here to destroy us, and I am the only one left to stop you. And since you are not like Kelron and do not have a single ounce of honor in you, you will attack me all together on horse. Just try. I will take enough of you with me." His voice was dripping with disdain as he raised his sword in a defensive position.

Kelron never learned what the paladins would have done because he took this moment to come out of hiding.

"Stop!" he shouted and ran toward Silverian and the paladins. The humans immediately went into defensive stance, their horses snorting uneasily.

"There he is, the traitor!" Waragus screamed, enraged. "Paladins, kill him!"

But Mergil positioned his horse right between Kelron and the other riders. "Just a moment. First, we should hear what he has to say."

"What is there to say? He betrayed us and helped the bloodsucker to escape! He is that creature's slave!" the warden shouted. "And you expect me to listen to him?"

"Yes." Mergil looked at Waragus with calm and steady eyes. "Those are the rules of our order, and no one stands above them, not even you." Then he turned to Kelron. "Well?"

Kelron slowly came closer, his hand on the hilt of his sword. "I'm not Silverian's slave – or Lord Valendar's, if you prefer to call him that," he declared firmly. " And I'm here because I wanted to learn the truth, but it seems there are even more secrets than I thought. What were you talking about?" He looked at Silverian. "And why aren't you sleeping? I don't understand."

"Very well, you shall know the rest of this story," the vampire said, not letting the paladins out of his sight. "For a very long time, vampires and humans lived side by side for mutual advantage. But it was different to the arrangement you have seen at my castle: at some point, a vampire meets a special human who is destined to be with them - and vice versa. The vampire drinks three times in a row from this human to form the bond I told you about. But this bond is not complete until both unite physically. From this point on, each of them shares the other's strengths: the vampire can be awake during daylight, and the human gets an eternal life. This has nothing to do with slavery since it does not work if one of them does not want it. Even more, very strong feelings are necessary."

Kelron stared at him in stunned surprise, unable to comprehend what he had just heard. Finally he managed to look at his warden.

"Is this true?" he whispered.

Waragus nodded grimly. "But it is slavery! Our king finally couldn't bear it and started to fight the bloodsuckers, so that no human ever again had to suffer for eternity in servitude."

Silverian sighed. "Our lord back then, my sire, swore an oath that no vampire would bind himself to a human, although it weakened us. We kept our word in the hope that peace would return that way. But the war raged on. And now it is obvious that most of the paladins do not even know why they are fighting."

Murmurs rose up among the paladins, but Waragus' warning gaze quickly shut them up. "There are enough reasons! And we'll finish it here and now!"

Without hesitation, Kelron stepped in front of Silverian. "It is finished, Waragus. If all this is really true, then this war has been even more senseless than I feared. It is enough."

"Out of my way, or you'll die even before your beloved bloodsucker, rules of the order be damned!"

Kelron didn't move, just looked at Mergil. "Master, if you have known all of this, how could you stay silent? Isn't everything you're doing here against our code of honor? Waragus learned this castle's location through a trick, and now there are standing three dozen armed, mounted knights against two single fighters. I don't remember any of this from your lessons."

Mergil stayed silent, but Kelron, having known his master long enough, saw that his words had moved the old man. Finally Mergil raised his hand. "Ready to depart!"

"Have you gone mad, Mergil?" Waragus yelled at him.

"No, but you have," Mergil answered calmly. "The boy is right. I've been having doubts for a long time, but I never spoke up. But now I see that we've gone too far."

For a moment, Waragus stared at Mergil in consternation, then he raised his sword with a shout of anger. Mergil parried the strike with ease; every paladin knew that the warden had no chance against the wiry old fighter. Seconds later, Mergil disarmed Waragus and held the tip of his blade to the warden's throat. 

"Do you resign?" he asked.

Waragus nodded quickly, and Mergil pulled back his weapon. "Paladins, we depart!" he ordered, and the riders turned their horses around.

The old paladin looked at Kelron. "Are you coming with us, my boy?"

Kelron hesitated, but finally shook his head. "No, not yet. But I hope I'll be welcome again, Master."

The old man smiled. "Any time. I'm going to send messengers to the other wardens, inviting them to a big assembly. Will you come and tell them what happened?"

"Of course. Maybe… there can be peace some day. Or do you think I'm a traitor as well?" Kelron asked.

Mergil shook his head. "You stayed true to your opinion and kept your word, my boy, just how I taught you to. It makes me very proud. Only a true paladin chooses the right path instead of the easy one."

"Thank you, Master."

The old man greeted Silverian with a silent nod, which the vampire returned, then he turned his horse around as well and followed the other paladins toward the forest.

Finally, Silverian broke the silence. "Thank you, Kelron."

The paladin turned toward him. The sunlight made the vampire's hair glow like spun silver and surrounded his face like a corona. Even in moonlight, Silverian hadn't looked this beautiful.

"You thank me because I wanted to stop this madness?" Kelron asked. "I would have done so either way."

"Maybe, but I want to thank you nevertheless. There has been so much suffering and death, but finally your fellow paladins seem to have realized their mistakes. I am sure that you and your master will persuade the others as well."

"It's not going to be easy, but we'll try; even more since I now know the real reason for this war." Kelron hesitated. "So I'm immortal now?"

"You will at least live as long as I will," Silverian answered. "And before you ask why I have not told you about this: I wanted to make sure that you wanted me and not the advantages of this bond."

"Damnit, you should know me well enough already to know that I'd never do something like this to get advantages!" Kelron growled. "And this is the last time you keep a secret from me. Or were you the one to just think of the advantages?"

Silverian shook his head. "No. But I knew that this was the only way, and I took it gladly. You remember me saying that there are strong feelings and a free will needed to form this bond?"

Kelron frowned. "Feelings? What feelings?"

The vampire smiled. "I thought that would be obvious, my stubborn human."

"I still hate you," Kelron grumbled before pulling the vampire close to him for a kiss.

When they separated a few moments later, Silverian's smile was as brilliant as the sun despite sharp fangs and blood-red eyes. "Does that mean that you are going to stay with me?" he asked.

Kelron's cheeks reddened. "And here I thought you could read my thoughts," he murmured. "But don't think that this changes anything. I'll stay a paladin, no matter how long I live."

"So much has changed already. But I would not wish you to be any different." Silverian took Kelron's arm. "Come on, let us return to the castle. The others have to know that the fight is over, and there are many dead to bury."

Kelron nodded. His hand, callused and tanned, reached for Silverian's marble-white, clawed fingers and solidly closed around them. They were like sun and moon, like fire and ice, like blood and silver, but nevertheless, they had found each other due to these strange circumstances.

Kelron still didn't know what to think or feel or what the future would bring. There was one thing he knew for sure, however: on this day, a new world had been born. A world where everything was possible.

Kelron smiled at that thought.

END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked it! I admit, vampires aren't the most original of themes, but I tried to give them a few twists. Translating this story from German was really gruelling, and I doubt I'll try it again, but it was a good experience. 
> 
> Thank you for reading! I *might* return to this universe someday, since I'd like to give Ardan a story of his own, but that's just an idea so far.

**Author's Note:**

> Here's another of my fantasy stories, this time a lot darker. A few notes: 
> 
> I gave this story a "torture" warning, but no torture is shown, just the results. But I wanted to be on the safe side.
> 
> I originally wrote this story in my mothertongue German, and I wanted to see if I can translate it. Therefore, the writing style is a bit different from my usual style when I write in English. If you understand German, you can read the original version for comparison. Just follow the link:  
> http://www.fanfiktion.de/s/4b3e0f97000091810c90138c
> 
> And finally, a big thanks goes to my awesome beta reader Scooby who really made this story legible ^^


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